Game:

Dragon Age: Origins (2009)

Category:

Review

Duration: 5:38

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Dragon Age Origins 360 P9D8G8S10T8.75

(truncated from original review)So there you go. I have played through the game twice, once doing everything I could, twice as a sort of speed run. You can check out my progress here. Looking back, I really wish there was an option to not doing the stupid mage tower dream thingy, but there always has to be one level that is just annoying, at least there weren't any sewer levels. Another type of thing I wish the game had was a dedicated arena or the ability to travel the roads and combat enemies, the whole random encounters usually just meant that I would just keep constantly running into the dwarf caravan. I also kind of think it would have been cool to maybe have the option to attack anyone ala Way of the Samurai, Two Worlds, and Oblivion. For some reason I really like the type of freedom. Oh well the game is still a blast to play and I figure there will be more of it in the future

Dragon Age 2 PC P9D8G8S9T8.5

I'm fighting off writing a full detailed review for this one. The voice acting is outstanding and visuals are great despite the odd texture/clipping glitches. From a technical standpoint the game boots and loads very quickly on my PC which was a nice surprise. Controlling my party was very easy and rewarding, not just point and click autopilot. I also enjoyed the tactics that you could employ that made me feel like my team was competent. I didn't really dig the stat based armor requirements and didn't really load up my party, most of the game I had my main character running around in her underwear. The game's world this time around feel rather small and condensed. Considering how mainly times I visited the areas for all the different quests it started to get real monotonous. That and I eventually started wanting a better fast travels system that didn't have me backtracking through the different city districts for the umpteenth time. Despite that though the side and companion quests do a great job in their variety and help make the game more personal. Even if at times I did end up feeling like the city's HR rep.

Story wise I feel that the plot act bookends to be a mixed bag from a narrative standpoint. One issue was that it made me have to have Varric in my party at all times for any of it to make sense. Luckily I found that the team banter was the real star of the show, not the overacring plot. It didn't matter who had in your party , there always would be a excellent exchanges of witty banter or commentary between your teammates. That's why I felt me team of Isabella; the seasoned pirate, Varric; the epic telling drawf, and Merrill; the wide eyed naive elf, made for the best combination. I played my character as a wise cracking mage, 99% purple dialogue options, which made for a more entertaining experience. The game uses a set on time jumps which I am usually a fan of. However in this cause I found them to rather off putting. Like why hasn't the town changed in all in those years. All throughout the city there is always clutter and broken masonry. Nobody has ever thought about taking down all the depressing post slavery reign statues and decorum down. I just think they should have dialed it down a bit and just had a couple of 3-6 month time jumps instead of years. Also the game has a ton of quests dealing with the whole mages are bad issue, which if you play as a mage feels more personal. I figured if you played as another class you wouldn't feel as connect to the main plotline.

Overall the plot is broken into three acts. The third was not the strongest in my option and the second was just right. For me I could have just stopped playing after I had woohoo-ed Isabella then woohoo-ed Merrill and had her move in. With no real outside world ending threat I felt content to just end the game there since you really don't have your family to worry about anymore. I did enjoy the ending though considering all the twists your choices end up making. It felt rewarding knowing that the people I spent the most time with had my back and those I didn't care about were cast to the side. I'm looking at you Carver, Fenris, and "I wish I could have killed you more viscerally" Anders. Overall the plot and game is great and I was pleasantly surprised that they didn't butcher and change the flow ala Mass Effect 2.

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